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Blimps and drones: a combination made in logistics heaven?
Amazon isn't the only retailer that's looking into drone delivery. Walmart appears to be working on a similar concept but its solution might be a bit different compared to Amazon's. Walmart has filed for a US patent for a floating blimp warehouse which will make delivers via drones. The idea is to have a floating warehouse up in the sky from where Walmart can instantly ship products to customers using drones.
According to the patent filing, the blimp-style floating warehouse would fly at heights between 500 and 1,000 feet. It will have multiple launch bays for sending drone deliveries. The blimp itself will either fly autonomously or be remotely controlled by a human pilot. This solution could help Walmart lower the cost of fulfilling online orders, cutting down on "last mile" costs to a customer's house which is normally handled by a logistics company.
(Score: 2) by MostCynical on Sunday August 20 2017, @10:25PM (1 child)
http://www.imdb.com/video/imdb/vi2240282905/ [imdb.com]
Or crashing helicarriers:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hVI-EQKi8V8 [youtube.com]
The whole idea of a warehouse that can crash is stupid.
Large distance, slow, high, blimps for transport with a pilot have *some* margin of error, from the height.
500 to 1000 feet is just adding some bonus potential energy to the first (and last) crash.
"I guess once you start doubting, there's no end to it." -Batou, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday August 21 2017, @05:50AM
Reminds me of this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QAsSWk3Ddsg#t=40s [youtube.com]